Arsenal can go on and win the league if they defeat Barcelona – Mark Bright

Writing exclusively for Metro, Mark Bright predicts that if Arsenal can defeat Barcelona in the Champions League tonight, then overtaking Manchester United in the league will ‘seem like a stroll in the park’.

Time to deliver: Arsenal’s Andrey Arshavin will face Barcelona in the Champions League tonight (Pic: PA)

On Saturday I was in one of the private boxes at the Emirates Stadium to see Arsenal play Sunderland. As the anxiety crept into the home crowd, all I could hear were groans from the stands.

Sat behind me was Little Britain star Matt Lucas and his mum. During a moment of silence in the second half, Lucas’ mum said: ‘Is this the team that’s supposed to beat Barcelona and Manchester United?’ I turned around and said: ‘You should be whispering that.’ To her credit she was probably saying what everyone else was thinking, it’s just no Gooner wanted to hear it.

I was also at the Emirates when Arsenal beat Barcelona on February 16. It was a truly memorable night, when they beat the best team I’ve seen in 40 years. Since that first leg, Arsenal have played four games, won two, drawn one and lost the Carling Cup to Birmingham.

Barcelona have also played four games in the same period and they’ve won all four, scoring seven and conceding one. Only Hercules have scored more than one against Barcelona at the Nou Camp in the league this season.But despite leading 2-1, Arsene Wenger’s men, I believe, still need to score two or more goals in Catalonia to progress.

Arsenal will have to stay focused, composed, and be lucky to go through. Cesc Fabregas’s likely availability is a massive boost for Wenger’s side, however in the absence of the injured Theo Walcott the worry is that Arsenal may lack the pace to trouble Barca.

Against Sunderland I thought Arsenal had too many like-minded players on the pitch. The team must have two things: pace and someone with the ability to go past a player. Against Sunderland they had them on the pitch – Samir Nasri, Andrey Arshavin and Tomas Rosicky – but none did it.

A positive result tonight, though, could reignite Arsenal’s season. After United lost at Liverpool on Sunday, the race for the title is on again.

And if the Gunners can see off Barcelona at the Nou Camp, then overtaking United would seem like a stroll in the park.